[Richard Choi]

Bogey, you would lose more than a half dozen...

[Richard Choi]

Hole #9, Par 4, 355 to 456 yards



This is one of my favorite holes at Crosswater. It is a pretty straight forward looking hole, but there is some depth and complexity due to its large and contoured green.



The tee shot is gorgeously framed by Mt. Bachelor and Little Deschutes. While the river on the right may steer the golfers to favor the left side off the tee, the correct play is to aim for the right side due to the left mound that guards the green.



On the approach shot, the green looks enormous (because it is!). However, there is a lot to think about as there is a false front on the right front and the mound on the left dictates your play. From the left side of the fairway, it would be pretty difficult to get the ball close if the pin is tucked near the mound.



The large false front is easier to see here. There is a quite a bit of slope left to right and there is a middle spine that you must carry for a back pin.



If you are too aggressive with your approach shot, you will most likely end up here in the back left collection area. Going across the green from here is not the easiest trick to pull off. You can also see that this green has the most internal contours than any other at Crosswater.

[Garland Bayley]

No need to wonder why I have never felt a desire to play there.

[Will MacEwen]

Rich,

Have you played Big Sky north of Whistler?  I've always found it quite playable, except for a couple of holes.  This looks much more exacting.

[Richard Choi]

Will, I have.

Out of the three prominent Cupp/Fought courses in PNW, I would put Pumpkin Ridge at the top, Big Sky second, and Crosswater third. I think the terrain is more varied at Pumpkin compared to relatively flat Big Sky and it holds your interest better. Big Sky is certainly more flexible and fun than Crosswater.

[Will MacEwen]

Thanks Rich.  I always thought Big Sky was a pretty good course for such a dead flat site.

[Richard Choi]

Hole #10, par 4, 334 to 412 yards



And we're back to island golf...



The tee shot does have some interest. The fairway narrows quite a bit about 150 yards from the green. The smart play is to lay up just left of the bunker, leaving you with a good look at the green.



If you take more conservative approach and leave your ball far left, this is the shot you are left with. The green has three sections, so you need to hit the correct section to get a good shot at the birdie.



As you can see in this photo, there is a fall off on the right side of the green. There is a similar fall off on the left side. Going long is not advised.

[Richard Choi]

11th hole, 386 to 480 yards, Par 4



Straightforward long par 4. The angle of the green marginally favors the left side of the fairway with the shorter of the two landing zone bunker guarding that side.



The cluster of bunkers on the left side of the fairway are mere window dressings as they can be carried easily. They are there to remind high handicappers that they cannot relax even without any water on this hole.



If you successfully carry the bunkers, you are left with a very accessible opening to the green.



The green is fairly deep with a ridge that bisects it. You need to carry the ridge to get it close for back pin positions.

[Richard Choi]

12th Hole, Par 5, 572 to 687 yards



This is the signature hole at Crosswater. This crescent shaped three-shotter gracefully bends around Little Deschutes, tempting big hitters to risk as much they desire. The obvious similarities to Pebble 18th are obvious.



Tee shots don't come much prettier than this one. Mt Bachelor beckons long hitters to come its way while a gentle river lulls you to sleep on this treacherous tee shot. The smart play is to aim for the far bunker on the right, but if you have any inklings about getting there in two, you must carry as much river as you possibly can.



The safe route will leave you 300+ to the green. For those who subconciously favor the right side, away from the water, the next fairway bunker about 200 yards away will catch them. The best play is to try to carry the bunker since the fairway does open back up after the bunker.




The green is guarded by bunkers on both sides, but the front is open and approachable. You just need to be accurate with your wedge distance on your third.



Thankfully, the green is open enough to accept long second shot approaches. Leaving it short would still leave you with a very simple chip. There is a bunker on the right side to catch any second shot that runs through the green. Even with its length, this is a birdie hole.

[Pete_Pittock]

There was a small sward of short grass about thirtyfive yards behind the back tee and right of the cart path. This remains the only 700 yard hole I have played. I reached the walking path a couple of yards short of the fairway and was bummed out because it wold have been driver off the deck.

[Garland Bayley]

Where's the cemetery?

[Richard Choi]

Sorry Garland, I don't know anything about a cemetery...

[Garland Bayley]

I think I found it.



Perhaps the bunker group is to keep too many balls from disturbing the dead and having the zombies come out.

[Richard Choi]

Hole #13, Par 3, 137 to 171 yards



The thing that I really like about this hole is the long and wide tee box that offers multiple approach angles to the green. I really wish this was more popular rather than islands of color tee boxes. Depending on the pin and tee position, this hole can play very differently from one day to the next.



The green itself is shaped to invite a gentle draw. Anything short right and long right will probably find the shaved areas with uphill chips.

[Richard Choi]

Hole #14, Par 4, 343 to 468 yards



A straight forward hole, very similar to #8 with wetland you must carry off the tee and Little Deschute running on the right side of the hole from beginning to the end (but really doesn't come into play).



I could probably use the exact same post for the #8 and would be just fine. The tee shot is open and inviting. There is a bunker on the right side, but everything about the hole leads your eyes to the mounds on the left. With the left side hump at the green, your approach is probably best from the right.



The only difference between this approach and the approach on #8 is the bunker that guards the front right of the green.  The green runs left to right with a spine down the middle starting from the hump on the left side of the green.



With that said, this is one of the better greens at Crosswater. You can see there is a huge false front right front with significant movement from left to right. Many people will end up with a very long uphill putts on this green.

[Richard Choi]

Hole #15, Par 4, 347 to 414 yards



This sporty short par 4 is one of the very few holes where no water or wetlands come into play.



The placement of the bunkers on the right side of the landing zone is peculiar as there is already a tree directly in play towards it and the shape of the green invites play from the left side. It probably does not matter as the preferred play is to just carry everything and leave yourself with a short wedge in.



The tree left of the green really does not come into play even if you are coming in from the left side of the fairway. The green is also very wide and the vast majority of the approach will be flying in over the bunkers.



This green is very wide and very shallow, with shaved areas both deep and to the right. This hole is all about controlling your distance with your wedge. You should be disappointed if you don't birdie this hole.

[Richard Choi]

Hole #16, Par 5, 503 to 598 yards



If I created a top ten GCA peeves list, a long par 5 that does not allow you to even think about hitting a driver would be on it. Here is a prime example. The fairway is spilt about halfway down by wetland that is about 50 to 60 yards wide. If that wetland was about half the width, going for it or laying up would be a real risk/reward scenario. But at this width, driving over it is not an option.



I am teeing off from the blue tee, which is about 540 yards away. I have no hopes of carrying the wetland as I need to fly it 280+ to a narrow area (need to hit 300+ to get to the fat part of the fairway). I don't really spend much time thinking about it and I pull out my 4 hybrid, which I normally hit about 200-210 and hit a beautifully shot that gracefully arc'ed in the air, down the middle of the fairway... into the wetland. I think this type of par 5 just went up a couple of notches in my peeves list.

After a futile search, I drop a ball and this is the view that I have.



There is a bit of strategy here has the big mound on the left front of the green hides 1/3 of a very large green. If the pin is placed back left, you need to hit your approach to the right side to have the best angle. There are a row of four bunkers if you fade it a bit too much.



You can see better from this photo, how much the mound obscures the green. There is a significant false front to reject any indifferent approaches.

[Richard Choi]

Hole #17, Par 3, 204 to 244 yards



This is a long par 3 that favors a fade. The left side of the green is very accessible, but a pin on the deep right would be troublesome.



From the tee, you really need to favor the right side, even though the bunker on the right can be intimidating. The green slopes away immediately away on the left side and any miss there is probably a lost ball. There is a lot more room on the right and as long as the tee shot is green high, the recovery shot should be relatively simple.

[Richard Choi]

Hole #18, par 4, 354 to 456 yards



Just when you thought you were done with target golf...



There is not much to think about, just aim dead center of the fairway and make sure you don't hit too long or too short. The right side is marginally favored, but not enough to really enter your mind.



If you hit the fat part of the fairway, you should have a short iron into the green. Once again, you need to pay attention to your distance. If you are a high handicapper, just pray that you don't lose one more ball into Little Deschutes.

A baby draw is the right shot. If you over do it, you will end up in the shaved area in the back left, which will give you a simple pitch back up. Missing short will the false front will take over and probably leave you with a very long putt/chip.



The River God of Little Deschutes asks sacrifice of ProV1's from every one...

[Richard Choi]

And that concludes my photo tour. Hope you enjoyed it. I know this course is not exactly the cup of tea for this clubhouse, but still, this is a significant course that started a slew of upscale "championship" golf course boom in Oregon and has hosted a Senior Major.

I have now played this course twice, and I enjoyed it okay the first time around. But that was before my eyes were opened by this site (YOU PEOPLE HAVE RUINED ME!!!). The second visit was considerably less enjoyable. My mind was pretty much checked out by I hit the 16th hole and was ready to be over with the round. It is not like I was losing a lot of balls either (didn't lose any in the front 9), but the sheer repetition and boredom got to me (and the fact that I paid $200 for this privilege).

I will probably stick to Tetherow and Pronghorn (and few other less know tracks) around Bend, OR next time I visit.

[Thomas Dai]

Richard,

Thank you for putting this photo tour together.

I don't know too much about this part of the US so I'm curious to hear if this course, or rather are all courses in this area, open 12 months of the year or is there a climate related closed period?

All the best.

PS - The houses around the course look of the expensive variety.

[Richard Choi]

I believe the courses here are open most of the year. It should be playable from Mar thru Nov at least. I know the promote ski/golf comb vacation packages.

[Garland Bayley]

Thanks Richard,

Have never seen the course, and now I know I don't need to.

[Pete_Pittock]

Richard,

Thank you for putting this photo tour together.

I don't know too much about this part of the US so I'm curious to hear if this course, or rather are all courses in this area, open 12 months of the year or is there a climate related closed period?

All the best.

PS - The houses around the course look of the expensive variety.

The three courses at Sunriver all open in mid-April. Meadows and Woodlands close mid-October, Sunriver at the end of October. Sunriver is approximately 1000' higher than Bend. The resort courses near Redmond are the only courses when you can plan winter golf, probably with a frost delay.  Central Oregon is skiing country from November theough March, centered around Mt Bachelor.

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